Downward dogs give way to Bloody Marys at The Montcalm’s Aviary, where Sunday mornings mean rooftop yoga above the Shard followed by free-flowing brunch. Anna Selby stretches, then unwinds properly…
The Montcalm Royal London Hotel in Finsbury Square has some of the city’s best rooftop views from the Shard to St Paul’s and you can enjoy them in a number of ways. There’s the glass-walled Aviary – on one side, it’s a drinks space with comfy sofas, on the other it’s a restaurant, the two divided by a vast bar with a great cocktail menu. The comfy sofas extend out onto a huge open terrace with the best of those views that you can enjoy any time with one exception. On Sunday mornings, this is a space reserved for yoga.
Emily Mouu has been taking over this spot on summer Sunday mornings for a few years now and at 11am, a group gathers on the hotel rooftop for an hour of flowing yoga and breathwork. Somehow, she tells me, rain has never caused a cancellation and certainly the morning I am there, the weather is glorious – so glorious, in fact, that it’s a relief when the sun hides behind the cloud. A word of warning – there’s no shade here so come ready with the sunscreen. In fact, if you’ve forgotten the sunscreen, no problem. The session comes with a goodie bag of moisturisers, water, hydration salts and, yes, sunscreen just to round off the morning nicely.
Appropriately enough, for a Sunday morning, Emily starts us off gently. I’m never going to complain about lying down and staring at the clouds but soon more focus is required as breathwork develops into stretches that become increasingly challenging before we’re into the vinyasa stage of the morning: downward dogs and planks, warrior poses and cobras, triangles and balances.
At times, it can be challenging but Emily is careful to point out that everyone should take it at their own pace (there’s no specific level of expertise expected here and beginners are welcome). At times, she adds a more difficult version of a pose for the experienced yogis and there is relaxation built in to the session, too.
By the end, I feel relaxed, stretched and energised. Did I say the end? Not at all. A few steps away, after a quick change, it’s time for the Aviary’s free-flowing brunch – and, if you’ve been at the yoga class, you get 25% off their Sunday brunch, as good an excuse as any to continue unwinding. There are three drinks packages: wine & cocktails; bubbles (Prosecco & wine); and champagne & cocktails. The free flow lasts for around 90 minutes and around it you can build a brunch of small plates or go for a proper Sunday roast (beef or chicken).
In fact, it just seemed too much of a summer’s day to go for that, so the Major and I kept it simple with a couple of delicious starters – sea bream ceviche and tuna tataki. There were plenty of others I would have happily tried (pulled wild mushroom with whipped feta, burrata with sundried tomatoes, smashed avocado with feta and coconut yoghurt) and they do have, too, a very tempting Seafood Sharer that included our two starters plus oysters and smoked salmon blinis).
Having decided against the roast, the Major went for a juicy aged beef and bone marrow burger while I had the Asian salad with panko prawns. We drank Whispering Angel in honour of the summer’s day but started off with two excellent cocktails – a peppery Bloody Mary for him and a wonderfully citrussy Green Margarita for me. There’s a Sweet Sharer platter for two but the alternative is a simple ice cream cone, albeit with some pretty exotic flavours (Dubai chocolate, lemon meringue). The Major, not being particularly exotic, chose vanilla. We could have been at the seaside.
This just might, though, be the perfect summer Sunday morning in the heart of the city.
Tickets cost for a session of the Rooftop Rituals: Sunday Yoga at Aviary are £38.98, to book ticket please visit Eventbrite. There are sessions on 12 and 26 July and 2, 9, 16 and 30 August. For more information, please visit www.montcalmcollection.com.
